The Butterfly's Burden

Dear Mahmoud, I’m just an average American white guy, but I want to tell you that even though you’re gone, even though this comment is not about what’s going on in your homeland, I think your symbolism has a perennial significance. Under siege. I feel as human beings, we are all Under siege in our lives, life itself is a siege as is survival in it,. For a while, I had that line from one of your , if not your, greatest poem. “Nothing pleases me.” I had that line above my desk, “I’m always besieging a ghost that is besieging me. “ Is this siege a ghost? Is this life an illusion? The older I get, and I’m approaching 70, it seems that perhaps it is. Have we been chasing phantoms the whole time? In any case brother, I send you greetings from 2025 southeastern USA. So many beautiful images and emotions you have left us with….

The Butterfly's Burden by Mahmoud Darwish (translated by Fady Joudah) is a beautiful book of poetry that covers a wide variety of topics. I loved having the original Arabic poems and the English translations side-by-side. I was so amazed by the different lengths of some of the lines that I asked my husband to spot check a few of the translations. He said they were pretty accurate. Darwish has a way of writing about everyday occurrences in ways that make them feel magical and the magical in ways that make them feel accessible. The Butterfly's Burden expounds on the impact of humans on other humans as well as the world we inhabit with its honest reflections on how human beings move through the world for better or worse.

Thank you arrived in perfect time and shape

A bit confusing to me but amazing poetry

Great. I just wish the font wasn’t super small. I speak Arabic fluently so I’m much more likely to read the Arabic version, but I find that I have to have the book very close to my face in order to know what I’m reading and even then it’s still a bit difficult. There’s sooo much space for it to have been used. That is my only problem though!

Went through a breakup with this book

Got this book as a gift and they loved it .. nice quality book

I love the poems in this book. Soulful!

Just. Beautiful

Es un libro muy bonito en apariencia de bien tamaño y reúne gran poesía del autor.

Mahmoud darwish poetry collection is a treat. And edition is also looking nice.

I really enjoyed reading the poems. The arabic (original) poem is also beside the english transition which was also really pleasant for me.

Absolutely brilliant book. The translation to English is very good . I recommend this book to anyone who has travelled or lived abroad and who appreciates poetry .